In April
by walking primrose
Summary: The group deal with the outcome of Negan's decision.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I can't believe I even wrote this. It's been a rollercoaster not only writing it but debating whether or not to share it on here. Thank you for reading. 

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In April

The death of Daryl Dixon had caused an uproar of emotions to plague the remaining survivors. The bat – named Lucille by its owner Negan – had ended the hunter's life quicker than anyone could have anticipated. The first blow had caused him to falter but a defiant and already injured Daryl had lifted his head back up to face Negan despite the blow cracking his skull upon. Blood had begun to escape the wound to his head and slide down his face and into his eyes but he had sat upright, as much as the pain his body wanted nothing more than to sink to the ground and as though the blow hadn't affected him.

As his friends and adopted family looked on in horror with screams escaping them, Daryl took blow after blow of the bat covered in barbed wire. The pure horror of a man so ruthless, cruel and unrelenting doing such a thing to a man as gentle and protective as Daryl Dixon had caused them to pinch themselves hoping that the harder they pinched, the sooner they were able to escape from the nightmare they were currently in. The harsh reality of the situation only made their hearts break as they realised it wasn't a dream and it was in fact real. They were unable to help him, and it made them angry at themselves even though they knew Daryl wouldn't want the attention of Negan and his bat Lucille to move onto them.

Negan took a step backwards, looking at Daryl's crumpled body lying on the ground and smirked. As if he was looking at a masterpiece he had created. Except he was looking at their friend he had just killed in cold blood.

Negan – a man they once knew only by name – had killed a member of their family.

Daryl's body lay unmoving on the ground, the blanket given to him and was once wrapped around him was now seeping with blood as his brains lay scattered upon the soil. His face – unrecognisable and partly missing – was caved in. Rosita and Glenn stared dumbfounded and in shock at Daryl's face as he was facing them. Tears escaped their wide eyes as their mouths were ajar in a silent scream.

Rick Grimes saw the reaction of his friends and felt his own tears burn his eyes as he fought with himself to keep his gaze away from his fallen brother. The true sadness of his friend's demise was already burdening him with guilt for this wasn't Daryl's fight. Rick had been the one who whose war as an answer to the problems of other people. And his friend – and brother – had paid the ultimate price. He turned his head towards Negan who was hitting Lucille on the ground to rid his weapon of the skin, skull, brain and hair that was embedded in the barbed wire. Nausea and rage rose with Rick as he stared at the man so clearly unaffected at the fact he had taken an innocent man's life. He swallowed the anger, acknowledging the fact that his group were outnumbered by a considerable amount. They wouldn't survive. And Negan knew that.

The complete disregard of the man he had just slain was something that troubled Rick. They were unable to go to Daryl's side, hoping that at least some life still remained within him. They were unable to move even just an inch, knowing they were being watched closely like vultures waiting for their prey to die.

"Hm…" Negan said, after a deadly silence. "I'm guessing he was loved, right?"

The group remained still, never once redirecting their gaze from their friend. Rick was the only one who stared at Negan, his eyes narrowed towards the man. Negan noticed, and moved his attention over to the leader.

"I'm guessing he was a friend to all of you… I'm guessing over time he became like a… big brother," Negan continued, his eyes burning into Rick's. "Now you know who you're messing with. You try anything, this will be the outcome of you…" he knelt down in front of the leader. "… or that boy of yours. Got it?"

Rick felt a snarl leave him, which only caused Negan to smirk.

"Down boy," Negan growled. "You don't need any more trouble knocking at your door. You're one man down, I doubt you can afford to lose anyone else."

"I'm going to kill you," Rick whispered, finding his voice. "And I'm going to make it slow… and painful… and you're going to be begging me for forgiveness. I can promise you that."

Negan watched Rick as he spoke with venom and listening intently. He fought the urge to laugh but remained straight faced.

"Good. I really hope it ain't an empty promise," Negan said, standing. "Because, I mean… what I did to your friend here, I can't wait to do with you. Now if you don't mind us, we have elsewhere to be. It's been great meeting you all, and uh… commiserations to your friend, of course. Lucille sends her love."

And with a whistle, Negan disappeared into a vehicle, and his men that surrounded the group all but disappeared into the shadows. The sound of engines started to fill the air, and with that, they drove away and into the night leaving the group remaining where they were knelt. It was only a while later, once the sounds of the vehicles had disappeared into the distance, that they had stood from their positions, knowing it was safe. Rick ran a hand through his hair as he thought of their next move. He heard cries behind him. He turned to observe his friends in mourning. Glenn was hugging Maggie tightly, and Rick wasn't sure whether he was hugging her or holding her up. He met Michonne's gaze and she stared back at him sadly.

Rick moved over towards where his friend laid. It was only when he was closer that he saw the true extent of the brutality that Daryl had faced. His face was caved in, his eye lay nearby, and his brains scattered the ground around him. Rick knelt down beside his friend, and placed his head in his hands. Sadness rose with him and he allowed the tears that threatened to fall to complete their journey. After a moment, Rick swallowed the lump in his throat and stood.

"We bring him home," Rick said.

The group nodded in unison sadly.

"He deserves a funeral," Rick continued. "He deserves to be remembered."

Abraham knelt and picked Daryl's lifeless body from the ground and placed him on the board that had once carried Maggie. Rick pulled out his handkerchief from his pocket and placed the fragments of skull and Daryl's eye into it before wrapping it up. As the group began to make the journey back the way they came and back to Alexandria - a place they were finally able to call home - they were all silent for they thought of their friend they had just lost.

Daryl Dixon had taught them many things – about the world, about himself, about themselves. One thing they all had in common was they had known a man who, when faced with a dying world, had found a reason to live.


	2. Chapter 2

**Part Two**

Alexandria had quickly become home for most of them.

It was a place where they could truly relax knowing the danger was being kept behind the huge wall that stretched around the small compound and surrounded them with a sturdy and substantial barricade that divided the living from the dead and the dangerous humans still existing in the cracks of the fading society. Home for the group had consisted of many different places: a quarry that had, for the most part, served its purpose with food and safety; a farmhouse with the promise of salvation; a relatively empty prison that barricaded them against the harsh world and offered them a home; the woods that had string wrapped around trees with cans attached. All had been some sort of salvation for them, but all had failed them sooner or later.

Alexandria, however, was the first place they truly felt safe. It had hope. It had plans for a bigger and better future for all of them. There was something about Alexandria that had given Daryl optimism when he had begun to believe that all hope was lost. Alexandria unknowingly gave him a purpose in life. He was safe, his friends were safe, and for Daryl, that had meant something.

No one went to bed terrified that they weren't going to make it through the night. No one went to bed hungry. No one went to bed wondering what the point to existing was anymore.

It was a place that they were all able to feel safe. The initial threat of Aaron tracking them down had caused them to question the reliability of the possible safe haven. They had wondered just how valid the photographs they had found of the houses and buildings within the small compound. But their worry had soon faded away as soon as their vehicle came to a halt in front of the gate, and heard children playing behind the safety of the walls that provided them with shelter. Their main reason for trusting Aaron was Judith: to have her be as safe as possible within the confines of the walls, and to have the chance of a real childhood. Carl's had been cut short, but Judith was still young enough to live life with a little bit of normality.

With any new place they stumbled upon, they spoke about the potential in which Alexandria had. They spoke of the advantages and disadvantages. They spoke of a back plan just in case it was compromised, just like the places before. They spoke about the potential future they could have. Everything seemed perfect, but all of them knew that it could come with a price.

And within the weeks of being at Alexandria, it had become home for every single one of them. Including Daryl.

He found himself laughing again. He found himself smiling at the prospect of a better future than any of them could imagine. He had a routine. He looked forward to going to sleep with ease and waking up with the sun. He enjoyed being on watch and knowing that he didn't have anything to worry about.

Daryl finally had a place to call his home.

And Rick believed it to be a fitting tribute for his body to be laid to rest within the grounds of Alexandria.

The walls of Alexandria came into view, and a sickening feeling welcomed them all. Losing a member of their family was hard but seeing a man who they had only known by name smash in the skull of their friend and brother was heart breaking.

They were angry. They needed revenge but the timing was wrong, and every single one of them realised that. They all needed to grieve, they all needed to take time to process their thoughts, and think about what their next move would be. The ball was in their court, and they had to think logically about it. Negan and his men would be expecting an attack in the next few days, Rick understood that. And even though it was tempting, he understood just how outnumbered they were.

One member had already been bludgeoned to death because of a mistake he had made. He couldn't afford what Negan was capable of next.

As they pulled up to the wall, Rick got out of the RV wordlessly and opened the gate. The streets of Alexandria were empty, and as he glanced around at his surroundings, he was able to see the early signs of morning beginning to make an appearance. The sky was becoming light, the birds in the distance were singing their morning song, oblivious to the recent death. He sighed and closed his tired eyes for a moment, but the rush of exhaustion made him unsteady on his feet for a moment and he grabbed onto the railing to steady himself. He took a deep breath and returned to the vehicle. He drove into Alexandria carefully as to not make too much noise and he weaved the vehicle around the streets and to where the vehicles were usually kept. He looked in the rear view mirror and saw the remaining vehicles following close behind him.

Nausea hit him suddenly as his eyes picked up a familiar sight and he gripped the steering wheel tightly.

Daryl's motorcycle was parked outside of the house that belonged to Daryl.

He came to a stop and remained sat in the vehicle for a moment. Abraham, Eugene, Sasha and Aaron exited the vehicle at that moment and moved towards the rest of the group. Rick's eyes moved towards the rear view mirror but this time he didn't look at the vehicles parking behind him and the group descending from them in shock, but rather at the body of Daryl covered by a blanket.

The body was still but every inch of Rick wished that Daryl would sit up and surprise him with a sick joke. He wouldn't even be mad. He wouldn't even curse at Daryl for pulling such a prank on him. He would just pull him into a hug despite the protest coming from the hunter.

"Move…" Rick whispered. "Get up. Get up…"

But nothing. The body remained still and Rick closed his eyes feeling the guilt and anger beginning to rattle against his chest. Voices came from outside and as he reopened his eyes, he was able to see that Alexandria had woken to a new day. People came out from the houses and were moving towards them all completely oblivious that one of them had been murdered.

Rick stood and descended from the RV. He saw the worrying expressions from his neighbours as they took in the blood soaked clothes of the returning members.

"Rick… what's happened?" Olivia asked, to which Rick glanced towards the ground.

Words seemed to fail Rick in that moment. Every possible sentence conjured up in his mind was too painful to repeat verbally. He wanted to tell them what had happened to Daryl, how he had met his demise, but nothing seemed okay. Daryl deserved much more than that.

"I'm going to call a meeting," Rick said, slowly. He was aware that he was slurring his words for he was exhausted. "Would you tell everyone to meet here in ten minutes?"

Olivia nodded and began to go door to door and gathering everyone up. Rick turned to Abraham.

"Will you help me carry his body out?" Rick asked, to which Abraham simply and wordlessly nodded.

As they carried his body out of the RV, Rick acknowledged that most of the inhabitants of Alexandria had surrounded them. As Rick and Abraham laid Daryl's body on the ground, it was evident that everyone realised the severity of the situation. To lose one of their own had almost become a distant memory, but now, they had lost a vital member of their group. There was no going back. There was no waking up to the nightmare in which they found themselves. The threat was very much real.

"Last night we lost someone," he began, his voice foreign to him. "The man we only knew by name trapped us. He spoke of loyalty. He spoke of mistakes. And we had made a mistake. We thought what we were doing was the right thing to do. We believed that everything was going to work out by itself. I believed that we were going to defeat them. But I was wrong. I made a mistake and I put every single of these people stood behind me in danger. And one of them paid the ultimate price for my mistake."

"Daryl Dixon was my best friend. He was a brother to me, and I let him down," Rick said continued, words failing him. "Negan played a cruel game. It could've been any of us. And he chose Daryl to teach me of my mistake. Of my error. But this has not stopped me wanting to know why. Life without Daryl will be hard, and his loss will be felt in all of us. We will not be the same. I know that, you all know that. So we keep our head held high and remember Daryl and what he stood for. We remember Daryl for what he did for us."

As Rick stared at the saddened expressions on everyone's faces, he acknowledged what he had to do. He couldn't let Daryl's death go unnoticed. He wouldn't let Negan get away with killing one of his friends in cold blood. He wouldn't let Negan just forget about Daryl for as long as he lived. He was going to make sure that Negan understood just what it felt like to lose everything.

Daryl Dixon's death was not in vain. It couldn't be. There had to be a reason for it. His friends before who had fallen had died because of something. Daryl couldn't have just been taken because of a simple mistake on Rick's part.

There had to be more to it. There had to be.


End file.
